Legend of the Last Tamer: Director's Cut
by djb21212-Steeldramon21
Summary: For my thirdyear anniversary here at this is a special edition of a Tamers story I wrote a while back. Those who read the original and liked it, you'll love the improvements. Enjoy!


Digimon Tamers  
Legend of the Last Tamer - The Director's Cut  
Written by: Steeldramon21  
  
Disclaimer: I, as always, don't own Digimon.  
  
Plot: This is a special director's cut edition of my old story. Some new material's been added while other stuff's been fixed. For those who read the original and liked it, you'll love this. Enjoy!  
  
Characters:  
  
Takato and Guilmon  
Rika and Renamon  
Henry and Terriermon  
Jeri and Elecmon  
Kazu and Guardromon  
Kenta and MarineAngemon  
Susie and Lopmon  
Ryo and Monodramon  
Beelzemon  
Akira and Lizardmon  
Alice  
  
Note: If the characters seem OOC, I apologize. This was kind of rushed. I may or   
may not revise this someday.  
  
================  
  
Takato Matsuki sat awake in the classroom, thinking to himself about everything that went on in the past year. He had made new friends, had gone on an amazing adventure, and fought to save both worlds just like the DigiDestined had in the TV series. Unfortunately, like Taichi and Daisuke from the TV series, he also had his own trials of the heart. Though he still had a small crush on Jeri, she wasn't the person on his mind at the moment. This time, it was Rika Nonaka.  
  
Of all the Tamers that Takato had met, there was no one like Rika. She had changed to a cold and unemotional tamer to a warm-hearted friend. Despite this, she never lost her attitude. Her often-unseen beauty and magnificent ability to fight a Digimon battle was awe-inspiring to some. She and Takato had formed a close friendship over the months, the two of them gaining a newfound respect for each other. But in the weeks following their journey through the Digital World, this respect would later grow into a secret crush. Being in an empty school with her at the moment wasn't helping.  
  
"I wish I knew what to do about all of this." Takato thought to himself as he looked over his new digivice. Unlike his old one, it was gold-rimmed with strange letters around it. "I mean, a few days ago I told Jeri that I like her better than a friend. Now, I think I'm starting to feel the same way about Rika." He puts his digivice down on his desk and looks out the window. "This doesn't even make any sense. Maybe it's like Ms. Asaji says: it's just hormones."  
  
"You okay, Takato?" Takato was startled out of his thoughts as he turned and saw the very person preoccupying his mind. Rika was standing there with her arms crossed over her chest. She was alone since Henry and the Digimon went to check out the rest of the school. "You look like you were confused for a second."  
  
"Uh, I'm just fine, Rika." Takato said nervously. "I was just thinking, that's all." He returned his attention to the window. It was looking straight at the pink blob covering most of the town. "You know, when we became Tamers, did you ever think it would come to this? I mean, us putting our lives on the line for the fate of the planet."  
  
"It comes with the job description, Goggle Head." Rika said calmly as she joined him at the window. "With every generation of DigiDestined or Tamers, there's always been some megalomaniac who wants to take over both worlds. It's our job to make sure that doesn't happen anytime soon."  
  
"I guess." Then, to Takato's surprise, Rika laid a hand on his shoulder.  
  
"Don't worry about it. If worse comes to worse, we just have to believe in ourselves."  
  
"Thanks, Rika." Takato said, trying hard not to blush from her touch. "Who would have thought that you'd be good at giving advice?"  
  
"Don't let it go to your head, okay?" Rika told him, also trying not to blush. "It was just advice, got it?" With that, she walked out of the room to find Renamon.  
  
"Okay, this is going to be harder that I thought." Takato thought to himself as he watched her walk away.  
  
-----------------  
  
Meanwhile, near the downtown area, a new digital field was beginning to form. The fog grew and expanded until it erupted. When the fog began to thin, a boy and Digimon began walking out. He had large brown hair and wore a blue shirt over a yellow T-shirt. He also had a pair of square goggles hanging from around his neck. His Digimon looked like a small T-Rex/dragon with blue skin and yellow eyes. The boy was Akira Hiroshi.  
  
"It looks like we made it, Lizardmon." Akira said to the small Digimon. "We're back in the real world."  
  
"And just in the nick of time." Lizardmon replied. "Look." They turned around and saw the blob of chaos engulfing the downtown area.  
  
"Oh man." Akira exclaimed. "The Sovereigns weren't joking. It looks like we've got a fight on our hands, boy. Let's go." With that, the two of them ran off into the night.  
  
-----------------  
  
The next day, Takato and the others were preparing to leave the school to face the D-Reaper. Just as they were leaving the school grounds, suddenly they heard the sounds of a battle going on nearby. The group looked and saw a giant blue dragon fighting some of the D-Reaper's ADRs.  
  
"Do you guys see what I see?" Takato said. "Is that Digimon who I think it is?" Henry took out his digivice and looked on the display.  
  
"AeroVeedramon, an Ultimate level Vaccine Digimon." Henry explained. "His fighting skills are near a Mega Digimon's and his main attack is 'V-Blaster'."  
  
"I've seen him before." Takato said. "It was a long time ago when I read the "V-Tamers" manga. I never thought that I'd seen him in person."  
  
"WAlk down Memory Lane later." Rika told him. "Right now, we need to get in action." With that, all three Tamers took out their digivices and three cards.  
  
DIGI-MODIFY  
  
"Digi-modify!" Takato, Rika, and Henry shouted as they scanned their cards. "Matrix Digivolution activate!"  
  
MATRIX DIGIVOLUTION  
  
"Guilmon, matrix digivolve to... WarGrowlmon!"  
  
"Renamon, matrix digivolve to... Taomon!"  
  
"Terriermon, matrix digivolve to... Rapidmon!"  
  
-----------------  
  
"V-Blaster!" AeroVeedramon shouted as he fired a blast of blue energy from his mouth at several of the ADRs. As several were deleted, more popped up and attacked.  
  
"Man, these guys just keep coming!" Akira said in frustration as he shuffled through his cards, trying to find one that would work. He found one and scanned it quickly. "Digi-Modify! MetalGreymon activate!"  
  
"Giga Blaster!" AeroVeedramon shouted as two missiles fired from a compartment on his chest. The ADRs still kept coming. Suddenly, several larger ADRs started coming towards him.  
  
"Watch out!" Akira shouted. Just then, two red bolts of energy destroyed the ADRs before they could attack. He turned around and saw Takato, Rika, and Henry running up to them with their Digimon.  
  
"Are you okay?" Takato asked when he got there.  
  
"Yeah, I fine." Akira replied. "We're just having a hard time with these... whatever they are."  
  
"Stand back and leave this to the experts." Rika told him as the Digimon moved into position.  
  
"Atomic Blaster!" WarGrowlmon shouted as he fired two blasts of energy from his cannons.  
  
"Tri-Beam!" Rapidmon shouted as he made a triangle of energy and fired it.  
  
"Talisman of Light!" Taomon shouted as she used her paintbrush to create a symbol of energy. All three attacks hit and destroyed the ADRs. Soon, the rest of them retreated back to the blob of chaos. After all of the Digimon de-digivolved, Takato and his friends turned to Akira and his Digimon.  
  
"Thanks for the help." Akira said to them. "I thought we were done there for a while."  
  
"No problem." Takato said. "Who are you? I thought we were the only Tamers around here."  
  
"That's kind of a long story." Akira replied as he introduced himself. "My name's Akira and this little guy's Lizardmon, a Data-type Digimon based on Agumon. He digivolves into Veedramon and AeroVeedramon."  
  
"Well, I'm Takato and this is Guilmon." Takato said.  
  
"My name's Henry and this is Terriermon." Henry said. "The one standing nonchalantly is Rika. Her Digimon is Renamon."  
  
"It's nice to meet you guys." Akira told them. "I'm glad to see that I'm not the only Tamer around here. Frankly, I'm glad to see anyone lately."  
  
"All right, you." Rika said to Akira. "We don't have time for idle chit-chat so start talking."  
  
"Okay, okay." Akira said nervously. "But I think we should go somewhere else first. Being around that thing give me the creeps."  
  
"I agree." Henry added. "We should get back to the school." With that, the Tamers all headed back to the school, unaware that a pair of eyes was watching them.  
  
"What is HE doing with them?" The figure thought. "No matter. They shall all become one with the chaos soon."  
  
-----------------  
  
"It started a few months back." Akira explained to the other Tamers. "I was playing a Digimon game on my Wonderswan when it started acting really strange. The screen turned to static. I popped the cartridge out and then it turned into this weird blue card. I didn't know what to do with it so I ran through my card reader. Next thing I know, it turns into this." Akira then shows them his digivice. It was light blue with a red clip as well as a silver rim and buttons.  
  
"Later, I scanned my two favorite cards, an Agumon card and a Monodramon card. A light came out of the screen and then, right before my eyes, Lizardmon was right in front of me. Don't ask me how but there he was. After a few weeks of Digimon battles, we came across a mean DarkTyrannomon. We almost got creamed until Lizardmon digivolved into Veedramon. During the battle, we were pulled into the Digital World. We made a few friends, and Veedramon managed to digivolve to AeroVeedramon, but then I heard about you guys. But by the time I got to the Sovereigns, they told me that you had already left for your world to fight the chaos. It was a miracle for me to get back."  
  
"It's a miracle you survived at all with that blob of Jell-O out there." Terriermon said, pointing outside with his ear.  
  
"Terriermon..." Henry warned.  
  
"What? I'm just speaking the truth." Just then, all of their D-Arcs beeped loudly. (Do you honestly think I'm going to call them D-Powers?)  
  
"Guys, I'm getting a weird signal." Takato said to the group. "I can't really tell what it is."  
  
"Just great." Rika said sarcastically. "This is the second time this piece of junk stopped working."  
  
"We might as well check it out." Henry said as they prepared to leave the school once again. When they finally traced the signal, they found that it was near the West Shijuku Bridge. Several of the ADRs were attacking something up there.  
  
"Guys, somebody's in trouble up there." Akira told them.  
  
"We'll take care of those things." Takato replied as he and the others took out some cards. "Someone has to get whoever's up there away from here."  
  
"Just leave it to us." Akira said as he and Lizardmon got ready.  
  
DIGI-MODIFY  
  
"Digi-Modify!" All four children shout as they scan the rapidly changing cards. "Matrix Digivolution activate!"  
  
MATRIX DIGIVOLUTION  
  
"Guilmon, matrix digivolve to...WarGrowlmon!"  
  
"Terriermon, matrix digivolve to... Rapidmon!"  
  
"Renamon, matrix digivolve to... Taomon!"  
  
"Lizardmon, digivolve to... Veedramon! Veedramon, matrix digivolve to... AeroVeedramon!"  
  
"Let's go, guys!" Rapidmon called out as the Digimon all flew upward to battle. On top of AeroVeedramon, Akira looked and saw what it was the ADRs were after. It looked like a girl with a large dog. She had blond hair and was dressed all in black. Just then, the girl tripped and the ADRs started moving in for the kill.  
  
"V-Blaster!" AeroVeedramon shouted as he blasted some of the ADRs away. Akira jumped down and went over to the girl.  
  
"Are you okay?" He asked her as she turned her over. The second he saw her face, he recognized her right away.  
  
"Akira..." the girl said in almost a whisper.  
  
"Alice?" Akira said in surprise. "What are you doing here?" Before she could reply, suddenly a loud explosion was heard. He turned around and saw AeroVeedramon being thrown back. The giant dragon Digimon slammed into the ground and de-digivolved. "AeroVeedramon, no!" Meanwhile, the other Tamers were having problems of their own.  
  
"Atomic Blaster!" WarGrowlmon shouted as he fired his attack. It was reflected back to him and slammed him to the ground.  
  
"Ahh!" Takato screamed as he felt WarGrowlmon's pain.  
  
"Rapid Fire!" Rapidmon shouted as he fired all of his missiles. They were also reflected back to him and forced him to the ground.  
  
"Oomph!" Henry grunted as he felt Rapidmon's pain.  
  
"Talisman Spell!" Taomon shouted as she created a symbol of light and threw it at the ADRs. The energy was reflected as well and hit Taomon hard.  
  
"Yaaahh!" Rika screamed as she felt Taomon's pain. Takato got to his feet and glared at the losing battle. He had no idea what to do now.  
  
"This isn't working." Takato said as he looked at his digivice. "We've got to figure out a way to biomerge to Mega."  
  
"It isn't going to work, Takato." Henry told his friend. "The only reason it worked in the Digital World was because we were data. Here, we're flesh and blood."  
  
"There is a way." The children turned and saw Akira with Lizardmon, Alice, and the large dog.  
  
"Guys, this is a friend of mine." Akira said to them. "Her name's Alice and she says she has a way to help us."  
  
"So, these are the ones we have been searching for." Alice said to them, her voice having an almost lifeless tone.  
  
"Yes." The large dog responded between growls. "I can sense it. I will at last fulfill my mission."  
  
"Look, Blondie, we don't have time for any guessing games." Rika told Alice in an aggravated voice, ignoring Dobermon's growls. "So spit it out."  
  
"Since your return to the real world, we have been searching for you." Alice explained. "Dobermon has a power that you can use to help you in your fight."  
  
"I was sent here by the Sovereigns to find you." Dobermon told them. "Within me is the energy needed for you to defeat the bringers of the chaos. To prevent it from falling into their hands, it was hidden in this form and partnered with a child." He then turned to Alice. "Alice, I must now do what I was sent to do. I've treasured the short time we spent together."  
  
"I have, too." Alice hugged the large Digimon as it nuzzled her. "I'll miss you."  
  
"I will miss you. I will always be with you, my friend." With that, Dobermon leapt into the air and began to glow with red and blue energy. "Good luck, Tamers. Save our world, before it's too late..." With that, Dobermon disappeared into flecks of data.   
  
"Are you okay, Alice?" Akira asked the blond girl out of concern, knowing it must feel awful to lose a friend. Her eyes retained their lifeless look as she turned to him.  
  
"He was one of the few in my life I was close to. I'll always remember him." Suddenly, all of the digivices went off with a bright light.  
  
"Hey, guys." Takato exclaimed as he looked at his digivice. "I think it worked."  
  
"It's about time." Rika commented.  
  
"Let's take care of business." Henry said as all of the Digimon returned to their Rookie forms.  
  
BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION  
  
"Biomerge activate!" All of the Tamers shouted as they changed into data and began to merge with their partners.  
  
"Guilmon, biomerge to... Gallantmon!"  
  
"Terriermon, biomerge to... MegaGargomon!"  
  
"Renamon, biomerge to... Sakuyamon!"  
  
"Lizardmon, biomerge to... WarVeedramon!"  
  
After the light faded, the Tamers looked and saw a new Digimon standing among them. WarVeedramon looked similar to Gallantmon but with several differences. His armor was blue and silver and he had dragon's wings on his back. His helmet was based on Veedramon's head. Finally, he had claws on his forearms.  
  
"This is too cool!" WarVeedramon said in the dual voices of Akira and AeroVeedramon. "We're a Digimon now!"  
  
"You get used to it." Gallantmon said. "Come on, guys. Let's make this a fight the D-Reaper won't forget." With that, the Megas went off to the giant blob. As soon as they got there, they were almost immediately attacked.  
  
"Lightning Joust!" Gallantmon shouted as he blasted several of the ADRs with his lance.  
  
"Gargo Missiles!" MegaGargomon shouted as he launched his missiles at more of the ADRs.  
  
"Spirit Strike!" Sakuyamon shouted as four foxes of energy flew from her body and destroyed some of the ADRs.  
  
"Vector Force!" WarVeedramon shouted as he gathered the energy around him in his hands and focused it into a beam of energy. Despite all of their attacks, the D-Reaper's ADRs kept coming.  
  
"Our attacks aren't doing anything." Gallantmon said as he destroyed several more with his lance. "It's like they're indestructible." Suddenly, part of the blob started moving toward Gallantmon from behind!  
  
"Takato, watch out!" Sakuyamon shouted as she pushed him out of the way. The blob then grabbed her and began to pull her in.  
  
"Rika!" Gallantmon shouted as he became surrounded by more of the ADRs, preventing him from getting the shaman Digimon to safety.  
  
"I... I can't break free!" Sakuyamon said as she struggled against the blob. "It's too strong!" Gallantmon tried to reach her but there were too many ADRs surrounding him. He watched in horror as Sakuyamon was pulled inside the blob.  
  
"Sakuyamon, no!" Gallantmon cried as his rage channeled into one attack. "Shield of the Just!" he cried out as his shield fired a giant blast of energy, destroying most of the ADRs.  
  
"Takato, are you all right?" MegaGargomon asked as he flew up to his friend. "What happened to Sakuyamon?"  
  
"She's... she's gone." Gallantmon said in almost a dazed state. "That thing swallowed her up."  
  
"We'd better get out of here." WarVeedramon suggested as he came up to them. "We might come up with a plan later on for saving her."  
  
"I agree." With that, the three remaining Megas flew away from the blob of chaos.  
  
-----------------  
  
Later, after the Digimon de-digivolved, the group reconvened at the school to try and come up with a new plan of action. With them was Alice, who remained with them after the battle.  
  
"Guys, I'm going to take Alice home." Akira said to Henry and a very distressed Takato as he was preparing to leave. "I'll be back as soon as I can." With that, they left the classroom with Lizardmon.  
  
"We should contact the others." Henry said. "We're going to need their help now more than ever." He looked over and saw Takato sitting on his desk with his goggles in his hands. His eyes were sad and distant as he started at them.  
  
"She always called me 'goggle head'." Takato muttered to himself. He didn't even notice Henry and Terriermon come up to him.  
  
"Momentai, Takato." Terriermon said. "She's probably fine."  
  
"I hate to say this but Terriermon's right." Henry added, trying to reassure his friend. "We'll get Rika back somehow, I promise." He then took out his cell phone and prepared to call Kazu, Kenta, and Ryo.  
  
-----------------  
  
Meanwhile, Akira and Alice were walking through what's left of the park with Lizardmon. Most of it was untouched by the D-Reaper for a strange reason.  
  
"Your friend is worried." Alice said to Akira.  
  
"I know." Akira replied. "You would be too if someone you cared about was sucked into a giant blob of jelly."  
  
"Akira, the D-Reaper feeds on the pain and grief of others." Alice told him. "Unless your friend puts it out of his mind, they won't be able to defeat it."  
  
"But... how could you be so sure? How do you know so much about it?"  
  
"I can feel it's anger, it's hatred for both worlds." Alice replied cryptically. "The D-Reaper craves this dark energy." Just then, Lizardmon's eyes went into feral mode as he sniffed the air.  
  
"There's trouble." Lizardmon growled. "It's really close." Suddenly, a figure moved out of the shadows and faced them. It looked like a girl with auburn hair and a sock puppet on her hand.  
  
"I know you." Akira said as Lizardmon stood defensively in front of his partner. "You're Jeri, a friend of Takato's. I saw you once in the Digital World with your friends."  
  
"You are him." Jeri said in an evil sounding voice that didn't seem her own. "You are the Last Tamer, the one who would help the others bring order to our chaos. We cannot permit an interruption to our goals."  
  
"What?" Akira didn't have time to answer as a shadowy blob moved off of Jeri's body like a shadow. It reformed into some sort of harpy-like creature with contracted yellow eyes. Jeri, on the other hand, collapsed onto the ground.  
  
"Plasma Breath!" Lizardmon shouted as he blasted the creature with a ball of blue fire from his mouth. The creature swatted the Digimon aside into a tree, knocking him unconscious.  
  
"Lizardmon!" Akira cried as he went over to his partner. The creature knocked him aside as well into the same tree, knocking him out as well. It then grabbed Alice by the waist.  
  
"Let go of me!" Alice yelled, struggling in the creature's grasp.  
  
"We shall has use of a dark individual like yourself." The thing hissed at Alice as she struggled to get away. "Your energy, as well as the other Tamer, will sustain us well." It then flew out of the park and towards the blob.  
  
-----------------  
  
When Akira came to, he found that Lizardmon was also coming around. Jeri was also conscious as well and she appeared to be normal again. She turned and saw Akira and Lizardmon.  
  
"What... where am I?" Jeri asked as she looked around. "Who are you?"  
  
"You mean, you don't remember anything?" Akira asked as he got up and went over to her. Jeri shook her head. "Well, I guess I should explain then. My name's Akira and I'm a friend of Takato's."  
  
"My name is Jeri." Akira then helped her up from the ground as she looked around the park. "Where is Takato?"  
  
"It's kind of a long story." Akira told her. He then noticed that Alice was gone as well as the creature. "Oh, man! That thing grabbed Alice!"  
  
"Akira, we'd better get back to the school." Lizardmon suggested. "It's getting late."  
  
"Right." He then held out his hand for Jeri. "Come on. It's not safe out here alone." With that, they headed out of the park and back to the school.  
  
-----------------  
  
"This is all my fault." Takato thought to himself solemnly as he stared at the goggles in his hand. "If I had paid attention, that blob wouldn't have gotten Rika and she'd be safe now. Instead, she's trapped inside that blob out there and there's nothing I can do."  
  
"Takato, it's okay." Henry said to his friend. "We'll find a way to get her out of there."  
  
"You don't understand, Henry." Takato told him grimly. "It's my fault she's even in there. If I had just been faster, I would have seen that blob reaching for me and Rika wouldn't be stuck there." He then sighed as he stared at the goggles in his hand. "You know, this kind of reminds of the Digimon TV show a little."  
  
"What are you getting at, Takato?" Henry asked.  
  
"In one episode," Takato explained, "when Tai and the others were looking for their crests, they had to save this Digimon called Datamon from Etemon's pyramid. They set him free but he kidnapped Sora later on. Tai was too scared to go after her and ended up regretting it later. Now, I know just how helpless he felt." He then saw the smile on Henry and Terriermon's faces. "What's so funny, guys?"  
  
"Takato, do you even realize what you're saying?" Henry said. Takato shook his head.  
  
"You're in love with Rika, Takatomon!" Terriermon chuckled. At this, Takato blushed heavily.  
  
"What... I mean that... I was..." Takato blurted out, totally flustered. "That can't be! I was just... worried about her. It doesn't mean anything... I think. If it were you guys, I'd feel the same way."  
  
"Yeah, right." Henry said sarcastically. Takato was about to answer when Henry's cell phone rang. As he answered it, he immediately handed it to Takato. "It's for you. It's Yamaki."  
  
"Oh." Takato took the phone and clicked on the receiver. "Hello?"  
  
"Listen carefully, Takato." The answer came over the other end. "Hypnos and the Monster Makers have been monitoring your battles with the D-Reaper closely. We believe we have something that might be able to help you."  
  
"Okay, what it is?" Takato asked.  
  
"Shibumi has come up with an idea based on the data from both the ARK that carried you and your friends back to the real world and your recent battles."  
  
"It's a specially-designed weapon called Grani." Shibumi explained over the receiver. "It is intended specifically for use against the D-Reaper. We keyed it to your signal so it will respond to your commands."  
  
"That's great." Takato said, happy for the first time in several hours. "Well, when is it coming?"  
  
"It's already on it's way." Yamaki told him. "It should arrive in a few minutes. When it does, your digivice should pick up it's signal."  
  
"Okay, Yamaki." Takato said. "Thanks a lot." With that, he hung up the phone and handed it back to Henry. "They're sending over something called Grani to help us out."  
  
"That's great." Henry said to his friend. Just then, their digivices went off once more. The group went outside to see if they could spot it.  
  
"Hey guys!" a familiar voice called to them. Takato looked up and saw Kazu and Kenta flying down to them on Guardromon with Ryo and Cyberdramon not far behind.  
  
"Kazu!" Takato said as his friends landed with their Digimon. "Finally, you guys made it."  
  
"We would have been here sooner but Kenta and MarineAngemon had to go to the bathroom." Kazu said jokingly.  
  
"Hey!" Kenta retorted. "We drank a lot of soda before he left. It's not my fault he can't hold it in."  
  
"It tasted so good." MarineAngemon chirped as he burped. "I couldn't help it."  
  
"We don't have time for you guys to argue." Ryo cautioned. "Takato, you said that Rika was trapped inside the D-Reaper?"  
  
"Yeah." Takato said with a downcast expression. "It's my fault she's trapped there. We have to get her out of there and soon." Just then, they saw Akira running up to them with Lizardmon and a normal-looking Jeri.  
  
"Guys, you aren't going to believe what happened to us." Akira said as he tried to catch his breath. "We were attacked in the park by some kind of thing. It came out of Jeri's body and kidnapped Alice."  
  
"What?" Takato said as he looked at his friend. For the first time in a week, she looked almost normal. "Jeri, is that really you?" he said in mixed happiness and disbelief. "But how?"  
  
"I'm not exactly sure." Jeri said to her friend as she took her sock puppet off and stuffed into her bag. "Akira told me what was going on, Takato. I wish I could help you."  
  
"Worry about that later." Henry said to her. "We're all just glad to see you back to normal."  
  
"Hold on a second, chumly." Kazu interrupted. "Just who is this guy anyway?"  
  
"His name's Akira and he's a Tamer like us." Henry explained. Just then, Takato's digivice went off brightly. He looked at the display and noticed that the compass-like arrow had become an X.  
  
"Guys, I think Grani is here." Takato said. The group looked up and saw that something was setting down on the ground near them. It looked like part dragon and part machine and seemed to be alive. It stared at Takato as it hovered there.  
  
"I think it wants you to do something, Takato." Henry said to his friend. His cell phone then started ringing again as Takato slowly approached the machine. He answered it and turned to his friend. "Takato, Yamaki says that you need to biomerge for it to work. It has an attack called 'Yuggoth Blaster' but it's untested."  
  
"Talk about perfect timing." Kazu remarked as he pointed upward. Suddenly, several of the ADRs from the D-Reaper came flying out of the nearby blob.  
  
"Looks like it's time to test this out." Takato said as Guilmon joined him. "Guys, keep the ADRs busy while we take Grani for a test drive."  
  
"We'll try, Takato." Akira said. "But one of us is going to have to stay with Jeri."  
  
"I'll do it." Kenta volunteered.  
  
"Thanks, Kenta." Takato replied gratefully as he put his goggles back on and Cyberdramon reverted to Rookie.  
  
BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION  
  
"Biomerge activate!" Takato, Henry, Ryo, and Akira shouted as they changed into data and merged with their partners.  
  
"Guilmon, biomerge to... Gallantmon!"  
  
"Terriermon, biomerge to... MegaGargomon!"  
  
"Monodramon, biomerge to... Justimon!"  
  
"Lizardmon, biomerge to... WarVeedramon!"  
  
"Good luck, Takato!" MegaGargomon called as Gallantmon jumped onto Grani. Immediately, the jets came to life and lifted him into the air. Meanwhile, as the other Megas were about to head off to face the ADRs, a familiar figure suddenly flew up to them. It was Beelzemon, still in his Blast Mode.  
  
"Don't forget about me!" Beelzemon called out as he flew down to join them. When Jeri saw him, she immediately shrank away in fear. MegaGargomon noticed this and stooped down to reassure her.  
  
"Don't worry, Jeri." MegaGargomon said in Henry's voice. "Beelzemon's one of the good guys now."  
  
"That's right, kid." Beelzemon said to her. "I'm on your side this time. Look, I know I can't make up for what I did to your partner. Heck, you probably hate my guts right about now. But what I can do is try to make things right. Please... I want to do the right thing this time."  
  
Jeri looked into the Mega Digimon's eyes and saw that he was sincere. He really wanted to repent for what he did to Leomon and the rest of the group. She was still sensitive about that but saw that Beelzemon wanted to make things right. She nodded solemnly to him. Satisfied with it, Beelzemon returned his attention to the other Megas.  
  
"All right, let's go fry these Digimon wannabes, eh?" Beelzemon said as they flew up to fight the ADRs. Meanwhile, Gallantmon was enjoying his time flying on Grani and avoiding several of the D-Reaper's ADRs.  
  
"This is fun, huh Guilmon?" Takato asked his partner inside of Gallantmon.  
  
"It's too fast, Takatomon!" Guilmon cried. "Stop the ride!"  
  
"Don't worry, boy." Takato said as he chuckled a little. "Just don't think about it and you'll be fine." Just then, Grani stopped as they were surrounded by several of the larger ADRs.  
  
"What now, Takato?" Guilmon asked. Takato, in his data sphere, simply grinned.  
  
"We put Grani's skills to the test."  
  
"Yuggoth Blaster!" Grani shouted as there balls of energy formed in his mouth and fired at the ADRs, destroying them on the spot. The remaining ones tried to move in but Grani was too fast.  
  
"Lightning Joust!" Gallantmon shouted as he sliced through several of them with his lance. Soon, all of them were destroyed. "Now, let's get back to the others. I hope they're okay." With that, both Mega Digimon and machine flew back to the others.  
  
-----------------  
  
As Jeri watched the Megas leave to fight the D-Reaper, she felt horrible that she wasn't able to help. With Leomon gone, she felt useless. Just then, she looked on the ground and saw a strange-looking card. It seemed to shine in the lighting of the entrance to the school.  
  
"What's this?" Jeri asked as she picked up the card. "I've never seen a card like this before." She looked over the card. It was labeled "Data Recovery".  
  
"Hey, Jeri." Kenta asked as he came up to her with MarineAngemon. "What's that?"  
  
"It's some kind of card but..." Jeri then got a downcast look on her face. "It's useless since Leomon's not even here. I can't even use it."  
  
"Maybe you should scan it anyway." MarineAngemon chirped happily. "You never know. It might come in handy."  
  
"Well..." Jeri said as she thought it over, looking at the card. It seemed as if it was meant for her, like it was more than just an ordinary card. "Okay. I'll give it a try." With that, she took out her digivice, the screen still full of static.  
  
DIGI-MODIFY  
  
"Digi-Modify!" Jeri shouted for the first time in a month as she scanned the card. "Data Recovery activate!"  
  
Meanwhile, Beelzemon and the other Digimon had started to attack the ADRs, trying to buy some time for Gallantmon and Grani to get back. Suddenly, Beelzemon began writhing in pain.  
  
"Hey, are you all right?" Justimon asked.  
  
"What's... what's happening to me?" Beelzemon screamed as his body contorted in pain. Flecks of data began pulling out of him and contracted into a beam of light. The light was channeled directly back to Jeri's digivice, causing it to shake and shriek loudly.  
  
"What's going on?" Jeri asked in confusion. Suddenly, the screen erupted in light as the data reformatted into a new Digimon. He looked like a small red rabbit with several tails. The Digimon opened it's eyes and looked at Jeri.  
  
"Hello, Jeri." The small Digimon said.  
  
"Who... who are you?" Jeri asked as Kenta looked on his digivice.  
  
"It says that this is Elecmon, a Rookie Digimon that uses his 'Thunder Strike' attack." Kenta said as he read the display. "It also says that Elecmon is the Rookie form of Leomon."  
  
"Congratulations." MarineAngemon happily said to her. Jeri simply gasped in shock.  
  
"Is... is this true?" Jeri asked tearfully as she picked up the little Digimon. "Are you really Leomon?"  
  
"Remember what I told you, Jeri." Elecmon said to her. "You have a lion's heart. You proved it by restoring me to life. I knew you could do it, Jeri."  
  
"I missed you so much." Jeri said as she hugged him tightly and cried. "I was afraid I lost you forever." She then looked towards the battle, where the others were fighting some of the ADRs. "We have to help them. Do you think you're strong enough?"  
  
"Yes." Elecmon said as he jumped out of her arms. "Just believe in yourself, Jeri, and leave the rest to me." With that, Jeri took out one of her cards and prepared to scan it.  
  
DIGI-MODIFY  
  
"Digi-Modify!" Jeri shouted as she scanned the rapidly changing card. "Matrix Digivolution activate!"  
  
MATRIX DIGIVOLUTION  
  
"Elecmon, digivolve to... Leomon! Leomon, matrix digivolve to... Grappleomon!"  
  
Jeri stood in awe as she and Kenta looked at Leomon's digivolved form. Grappleomon looked like Leomon but some of his body was cybernetic and he looked stronger. He picked up Jeri and Kenta and put them on his shoulders.  
  
"Come on." Grappleomon said to them. "Let's go help our friends." With that, the cyborg Digimon leapt onto the roof and began racing to the battle, MarineAngemon flying close behind them.  
  
-----------------  
  
Deep inside the blob of chaos, Rika sat inside of some sort of bubble with Renamon and Alice. The entire realm was full with the chill of evil and destruction. Both girls were already beginning to feel the effects as their darkest fears began replaying in their minds.  
  
"We may never get out of here." Rika said grimly. "Even if we could get out, what's the point? This thing would just keep coming after us until we're destroyed. I let everyone down. My mom and grandma must be worried sick."  
  
"At least you have something to go back to." Alice commented grimly. "Since my grandparents died, I always felt like I was alone. Neither one of my parents had any time for me anymore. Until Dobermon came along, I was always an outcast. He and Akira were the only ones I opened myself to. Now, I may never see him or anyone else again."  
  
"That's enough, you two." Renamon said sternly. "We can't let this chaos beat us. That's exactly what it wants from us, just to sit here and mope so it could feed on us." She then turned to her partner. "Rika, you know that you have to keep fighting. It isn't like you to give up like this. Your mother and grandmother are counting on you to make it out of here alive and you can't let them down." She then turned to Alice. "I don't know much about your life, Alice, but I do know that you can't give up either. You still have those who care about you. Akira, Takato, and the others are fighting to get us out of here. We can't let their fight be in vain."  
  
"Renamon's right." Rika said. "If we give up now, then what's the point of fighting at all? It's just like when we fought Ice Devimon. If I had let him win, Renamon and I wouldn't be as close as we are now."  
  
"I agree with your Digimon." Alice said. "There are those who do care about me. My parents may not have much time for me anymore but I know they still love me. I can't let them down, either. I won't tarnish Dobermon's memory that way." Both girls looked somewhat better thanks to Renamon's talk. There was a different look in Alice's eyes now. It was one of hope. Rika then stood up and looked around her surroundings.  
  
"Now, how exactly are we going to get out of here?" Rika said. Just then, she heard the sounds of several explosions outside. Part of the blob moved aside and formed some kind of screen. Both girls and Digimon looked and saw what was going on outside.  
  
"The other Tamers are fighting." Renamon said to them. "We may get out of here a lot sooner than expected."  
  
-----------------  
  
Meanwhile, at Hypnos's temporary headquarters in a nearby hotel, Yamaki's group was monitoring the battle with the D-Reaper closely. With them were the parents of all the children, who were worried sick over the children.  
  
"I need to know what's going on out there." Yamaki ordered. "We can't just sit here and wait for them to call us."  
  
"We're already working on it, Yamaki." Janyuu, Henry's father, told him. "We do have an idea, though."  
  
"If we reconfigure the data feed we're picking up from the battle," Shibumi explained, "and redirect it to bounce off of a satellite in orbit that isn't affected by the D-Reaper, we could use it as sort of a video tap. It will let us see what's going on but it's only a theory."  
  
"Get working on it." Yamaki said as he turned to look at some of the parents. "We need that info as quickly as possible." Meanwhile, Susie was getting restless with Lopmon as they waited for Henry to return.  
  
"Lopmon, I'm getting worried." Susie said to her partner. "Henry might be in big trouble."  
  
"At the moment, Susie, there's nothing we can do." Lopmon told her. "I still can't digivolve."  
  
"You didn't even try!" Susie said as she started getting upset. "My brother needs us and I don't want to just sit here! If I don't help, he might get hurt or something. Please, Lopmon, you have to try. Please..."  
  
Lopmon looked at Susie and began thinking. She cared about her brother enough to put herself on the line. If Susie could do that, then there was no reason why she couldn't either. She then went to the window and opened it.  
  
"Come on." Lopmon said to her partner. "Let's go save your brother."  
  
"Yay!" Susie cheered. Suddenly, a blue card appeared in her hands. "Wow, it's so pretty." Susie commented.  
  
"Go for it, Susie!" Lopmon said as she leapt out of the window and Susie's digivice began to glow.  
  
DIGI-MODIFY  
  
"Digi-Modify!" Susie shouted happily as she scanned the card. "Matrix Digivolution activate!"  
  
MATRIX DIGIVOLUTION  
  
"Lopmon, matrix digivolve to... Antylamon!"  
  
"Hop on, Susie." Antylamon said as the little girl climbed onto her back. Her mother had just turned around and was startled by what she saw.  
  
"Susie!" she cried out as she went to the window. "Susie, come back!"  
  
"I'll be okay!" Susie called to her mother. "We'll be back with Henry!" With that, the giant rabbit leapt over some buildings as they raced to the battle. Her mother sat on the window and started to cry, afraid that she'd lost both her children.  
  
"They're both gone." She said as she cried in her hands. "I lost both of my babies now." She then felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder. She looked up and saw Janyuu standing there.  
  
"It's going to be okay." Janyuu said calmly. "Susie has her Digimon and Henry to protect her. We just have to have faith in them now."  
  
-----------------  
  
Outside of the blob, the Megas plus Guardromon fought with several of the more advanced ADRs. The battle was not going as smoothly as planned.  
  
"Mega Barrage!" MegaGargomon shouted as several compartments opened on his body and fired a bombardment of weapons at several ADRs.  
  
"Justice Kick!" Justimon shouted as he fiercely landed several kicks to some of the ADRs.  
  
"Corona Blaster!" Beelzemon shouted as his gun opened up and blasted a lot of the ADRs with a blast of energy.  
  
"Vector Force!" WarVeedramon shouted as he gathered energy into his hands and focused it into a beam of energy, blasting several of the ADRs with it.  
  
"Guardian Barrage!" Guardromon shouted as he fired two missiles from his arms at several of the ADRs. Despite all of the attacks, they still kept coming.  
  
"Man, this isn't working!" Kazu said in frustration. "Where's backup when you need it?"  
  
"Somebody call for backup?" Gallantmon called out as he flew in on Grani and powered up his attack. "Lightning Joust!" he shouted as he destroyed some of the ADRs.  
  
"Yuggoth Blaster!" Grani shouted as he blasted more of them with his attack.  
  
"Are you guys okay?" Gallantmon asked as he and Grani joined the rest of the Megas.  
  
"We're just peachy." MegaGargomon said in Terriermon's voice sarcastically. "Of course we're not okay!"  
  
"Grappling Fist!" someone called out as some of the ADRs were destroyed. The Tamers turned and saw, to their surprise, Jeri and Kenta riding atop something that looked like Leomon.  
  
"Is that what I think it is?" MegaGargomon said in disbelief.  
  
"Jeri!" Gallantmon said in amazement. "How did... how did you..."  
  
"It's a long story, Takato." Jeri said as she and Kenta climbed down off of Grappleomon. There was a different look in her eyes, almost one of confidence. Just then, they saw Antylamon leaping off of a rooftop and landing near them. Susie was on her back.  
  
"Susie, you shouldn't be here!" Henry scolded from inside MegaGargomon. "Why aren't you with Mom and Dad?"  
  
"I had to come, Henry." Susie said. "You need my help!"  
  
"Henry, we'll watch Susie for you while you all handle the D-Reaper." Jeri said to him as she smiled sweetly. "We'll make sure she doesn't get hurt, okay?"  
  
"Hey, look who's blushing." Terriermon said as he giggled inside of MegaGargomon. "I think someone likes someone."  
  
"I'll deal with you later." Henry told his partner as he turned his attention back to the   
  
battle.  
  
"Guys, I think that if we attack at the same time, we might break through." WarVeedramon suggested. "I don't think the D-Reaper's ADRs could stand up to that kind of assault."  
  
"Agreed." Gallantmon said as he flew up beside him.  
  
"Guardian Barrage!" Guardromon shouted as he fired his missiles.  
  
"Grappling Fist!" Grappleomon shouted as he fired a fist-shaped blast of energy.  
  
"Bunny Blades!" Antylamon shouted as her hands turned into axes and slashed two arc-shaped beams of energy.  
  
"Thunder Clap!" Justimon shouted as he slammed his arm onto the ground, sending out a wave of electricity.  
  
"Corona Destroyer!" Beelzemon shouted as he traced a pentagram in the air and fired his attack through it.  
  
"Gargo Missiles!" MegaGargomon shouted as he fired his two giant missiles.  
  
"Dragon Flare!" WarVeedramon shouted as he gathered as much energy as possible in his hands and fired it as a beam of energy.  
  
"Yuggoth Blaster!" Grani shouted as he formed three balls of energy in his mouth and fired it as one shot.  
  
"Shield of the Just!" Gallantmon shouted as his shield glowed and blasted a giant beam of energy from the center. All of the attacks combined and slammed through all of the ADRs, destroying them on the spot. When the smoke cleared, a hole had opened in the blob.  
  
"We did it!" WarVeedramon said as he flew towards the opening. "Let's go save our friends!" With that, both heroes flew into the opening. As the other Digimon tried to follow, suddenly the opening closed immediately.  
  
"Oh great." Kazu said. "Now what do we do?"  
  
"Unfortunately, there's nothing we can do." Justimon said in Ryo's voice. "I'm afraid that this is their fight now. All we can do is hope and pray."  
  
-----------------  
  
Inside of the D-Reaper, Gallantmon and WarVeedramon found themselves in a totally different realm. They saw twisted version of buildings and streets from downtown, the structures etched with pulsing red veins.  
  
"Takato, we have to hurry." WarVeedramon advised. "It's absorbing everything in sight."  
  
"I know." Gallantmon replied as they searched around the area. Just then, they saw some sort of bubble floating near where the Hypnos building was. In the bubble were Rika, Alice, and Renamon.  
  
"Rika!" Gallantmon called out as he soon as he saw her. "Rika, hold on! We're coming!"  
  
"Takato!" Rika cried out as soon as she saw the two Megas heading towards them. Just then, part of the blob poured down and formed into the same harpy-like creature that Akira saw.  
  
"You again!" WarVeedramon said angrily.  
  
"We will not tolerate interference to our objective!" The creature screeched as she attacked both Mega Digimon. She threw Gallantmon off of Grani and started hitting him. WarVeedramon grabbed her from behind and threw her aside.  
  
"Lightning Joust!" Gallantmon shouted as he powered up his lance. The creature punched him before he could attack.  
  
"Takato!" Rika cried.  
  
"Vector Force!" WarVeedramon said as he channeled his energy. The creature kicked his aside before he could attack.  
  
"Akira, no!" Alice cried out.  
  
"Soon, the world shall be cleansed of those who defy our order!" The creature said as she summoned several of the ADRs from outside. "Destroy them all!" she screeched as they moved in and wrapped around the two Digimon. They screamed in pain as the ADRs shocked them.  
  
"We can't just stand around and watch them get beaten like this." Rika said in frustration.  
  
"Unfortunately, Rika, I don't have enough strength." Renamon said to her partner. Just then, all of them saw Gallantmon and WarVeedramon thrown aside. They were so weakened that they de-digivolved instantly.  
  
"That does it!" Rika said angrily as she whipped out a Modify card. "Digi-Modify! Power Boost activate!"  
  
"Diamond Storm!" Renamon shouted as she blasted the bubble with her attack. It was so strong that it broke right away. As soon as it did, Rika and Alice ran over to the boys. They were beaten up badly and their Digimon didn't appear to be any better. Akira was still conscious but Takato was out of it.  
  
"Takato?" Rika said as she stooped down. "Come on, goggle head, say something." Renamon went over and checked his pulse.  
  
"He's alive, but very weak." Renamon told her.  
  
"I don't understand it." Rika said to herself as she absent-mindedly stroked Takato's hair. "Why would Takato just risk his life like this for me? I'd understand if it was for Jeri but not for me."  
  
"Why would you think that, Rika?" Renamon asked.  
  
"Because after the way I treated him over the last few months, I would understand it if he just left me in here. He was always so nice to me, even when he sent that e-mail to my mom and grandma. When he complimented me on my shirt a few days ago, I didn't know what to make of it. I just got this warm feeling from him. It's the same feeling I got from him after I became Sakuyamon. I just..." Rika then felt tears begin to cloud her vision. "I'm scared, Renamon. I   
  
don't know what to do."  
  
"He loves you, Rika." Renamon said plainly. "That's why he came in here to rescue you. He loves you... like you love him."  
  
At this, Rika's face flushed a deep crimson. She couldn't believe what she just heard. After everything that they went through, Takato loved her. The whole time that they had gone on their adventure, everyone thought that he had a crush on Jeri. Though she didn't show it, Rika was somewhat upset when she heard that Takato had told Jeri that he like her more than a friend. After hearing what she just heard, it was almost unbelievable. She then looked at Takato with tears in her eyes.  
  
"But... how could he love me?" Rika said as she smoothed her hair. "It still doesn't make any sense, Renamon. Sure, I guess I felt something after all we went through. But why would he want me when he has someone like Jeri?"  
  
"Rika," Renamon said to her, "I am not an expert on love, but I do know that he does care for you. If he didn't, he wouldn't have risked his life to save yours in this way. Perhaps his heart was still unsure of itself before now."  
  
"Oh..." Rika then turned to the unconscious leader of the Tamers, gently moving his goggles aside. She then bent down and kissed Takato firmly on the lips. Suddenly, both of their digivices went off and cast a bright glow over them. Takato opened his eyes and found that he was kissing Rika fully on the lips. On instinct alone, he pulled her closer to him. When the kiss broke, the two of them stared breathlessly at each other.  
  
"...Rika?" Takato said breathlessly as he got to his feet. "Is this a dream?"  
  
"Sorry, goggle-head." Rika said smiling. "It's as real as it comes."  
  
"Welcome back, Takato." Akira said as he, Alice, and the Digimon came up to them. "Glad to see you awake."  
  
"Thanks." Takato said as he whipped out his digivice. "Do you think you can handle one more fight?"  
  
"Just try and stop me." Akira replied as he took out his own digivice and turned to Rika. "Rika, could you and Renamon get Alice out of here?"  
  
"Don't boss me around, goggle-brain." Rika then turned to Takato as she and Renamon prepared to leave. "Just don't get yourselves killed, okay?"  
  
"Don't worry, we'll be fine." Takato told her.  
  
"Akira?" Alice asked her friend.  
  
"Yeah?" He was interrupted as he found himself in an embrace from her. Akira returned the feeling, not wanting the moment between to end. When it broke, the two of them were blushing heavily, his eyes meeting hers.  
  
"Be careful." Alice said.  
  
"I... I will." Akira said nervously as he rubbed the back of his head.  
  
"Come on, Blondie." Rika said to Alice. "We'd better get going." With that, she slipped on her sunglasses and started walking with Renamon in the opposite direction with the young gothic girl. Akira then went to Takato's side with Lizardmon.  
  
"All right then." Takato said as he held his digivice up once more. "Let's do it!"  
  
BIOMERGE DIGIVOLUTION  
  
"Biomerge activate!" Both boys shouted as they were changed into data and merged with their partners once more.  
  
"Guilmon, biomerge to... Gallantmon!"  
  
"Lizardmon, biomerge to... WarVeedramon!"  
  
"All right, D-Reaper!" Gallantmon said bravely to the harpy-like creature as he leapt onto Grani. "It's time to meet the swift taste of justice! Lightning Joust!"  
  
"Yuggoth Blaster!" Grani shouted as he blasted the creature with his attack.  
  
"Vector Force!" WarVeedramon shouted as he channeled some energy into his hands and blasted the creature with it. It wasn't even fazed after the smoke cleared.  
  
"Your devotion shall be your downfall!" The creature screeched as several of the ADRs resembling buzz saws came flying at them.  
  
"Not today!" Gallantmon shouted as he powered up his shield. "Shield of the Just!" He shouted as his attack slammed into the creature.  
  
"Dragon Flare!" WarVeedramon shouted as all of his energy was channeled into a giant blast, destroying the ADRs and engulfed the creature. Despite all of the attacks, the creature was barely hurt.  
  
"Foolish Tamers." The creature hissed at them. "I am the avatar of the D-Reaper, the embodiment of the glory of the chaos. You cannot disrupt our mission!" With that, several bolts of energy rained down on Gallantmon and WarVeedramon.  
  
"Isn't there anything that can take out this creature?" WarVeedramon said in frustration.  
  
"We can't give up!" Gallantmon told him. "There are too many people counting on us! We have to keep fighting!"  
  
-----------------  
  
Outside of the blob, all of the remaining Tamers had de-digivolved their Digimon to the In-Training level and were waiting outside for Takato and Akira. The only exceptions were MarineAngemon and Impmon for some odd reason. Calumon, who had just flown in, was waiting in Jeri's arms. Also, waiting with them were their parents along with Yamaki and Riley.  
  
"Everybody, look!" Kenta said as he pointed towards the chaos. Everyone looked and saw another opening appear. Suddenly, Kyuubimon leapt out of it with Rika and Alice on her back.  
  
"Rika!" Her mother shouted, overjoyed that her daughter was safe and sound. "Are you all right?" she asked as she hugged her daughter tightly. "Are you hurt?"  
  
"I'm all right, Mom." Rika said as she squirmed in her mother's grip. Meanwhile, Alice was also being cooed over by her own mother, Daisy.  
  
"Mother, stop." Alice said uneasily. "I'm all right." Just then, Kyuubimon de-digivolved not to Renamon but her In-Training form. Rika whipped out her digivice and scanned the new Digimon.  
  
"It says that this is Viximon, the In-training form of Renamon." Rika commented as she picked up the small Digimon. "I guess you lost a lot of energy, huh?"  
  
"Rika, where's my baby?" Takato's mother asked. "Where's Takato?" She looked towards the chaos, where the remaining ADRs retreated inside. She then fainted on the spot in her husband's arms.  
  
"Be careful, son." Takato's father thought as he looked towards the chaos with everyone else.  
  
-----------------  
  
Meanwhile, Gallantmon and WarVeedramon were losing the battle badly. Though their armor was cracked and chipped severely, the creature was unharmed.  
  
"Face it, Tamers." The creature hissed. "You cannot win. Soon, your entire world shall fall to the chaos."  
  
"Takato, we've tried everything." WarVeedramon said to his friend. "This thing just isn't going down. Maybe it can't be destroyed."  
  
"Don't say that!" Gallantmon said. "There's got to be a way! We can't give up! If we give up now, then everything we fought so hard to defend will be destroyed. Our hopes and dreams will have meant nothing. I don't know about you, but I'm not going to stop fighting!"  
  
"Maybe Takato's right." Akira thought inside of WarVeedramon. "We can't just surrender to this chaos. If his belief in himself is that strong, then mine should be as well." With that, the two Megas and Grani began to glow brightly. The light became so bright that it spread out over the chaos.  
  
"What... what are you doing?" the creature screeched.  
  
MODE CHANGE DIGIVOLUTION  
  
"Gallantmon, mode change to... Crimson Mode!"  
  
"WarVeedramon, mode change to... Wing Mode!"  
  
As the light faded, Gallantmon and WarVeedramon looked remarkably different. Gallantmon's armor was now red, since Grani is now part of him, and had ten angel's wings on his back. He also had two swords instead of one in both hands. WarVeedramon's armor was gold and had large silver wings. Also, his claws had extended.  
  
"D-Reaper, your reign of terror and destruction is at an end." Gallantmon said in a brave tone. "You have caused too much desolation and misery in our world, so you must be stopped."  
  
"Your darkness cannot be allowed to continue." WarVeedramon added. "We, the twin Digimon of justice, shall end this now!" With that, the two holy knights charged the creature. Gallantmon landed a punch to her stomach and WarVeedramon kicked her in the back.  
  
"Invincible Sword!" Gallantmon shouted as his two swords glowed and he slashed the creature, causing her pain for once.  
  
"Dragon Saber!" WarVeedramon shouted as he formed an energy sword and also slashed the creature.  
  
"Hey, it's working!" Gallantmon said in amazement.  
  
"You... shall not... disrupt... our mission..." The creature hissed at the two holy knights as she charged at them. "We shall consume you all!"  
  
"Never!" both Mega Digimon said at the same time as they both began to glow brightly.  
  
"Are you ready?" Gallantmon said to his friend.  
  
"Let's end this battle!" WarVeedramon replied.  
  
"Final Justice!" Gallantmon shouted as he combined his swords into one and channeled all of his energy into a beam of solid energy.  
  
"Dragon's Wrath!" WarVeedramon shouted as the center of his chest channeled all of his energy into a solid beam of power. Both beams merged and overpowered the creature, deleting it instantly. Also, the entire area was enveloped in the energy, spreading out of the chaos and deleting it wherever it was. Outside, everyone shielded his or her eyes from the light. As it began to fade, Rika and Alice immediately started looking for any signs of their friends. Suddenly, two shadows started walking out of the light. Everyone looked and saw that it was Takato and Akira. They were both holding very tired In-Training Digimon.

"Takato!" Rika shouted as she and the others raced over to their friends. But as soon as she got there, she smacked Takato's head. "Don't even think about doing that again without me, got it?"  
  
"Yes, ma'am." Takato said as everyone laughed. Suddenly, there was a distant rumbling. Everyone looked up and saw that there was a tear in the sky, similar to the one that opened during the Tamers' battle with the Pig Deva, Vikaralmon. Yamaki was on his comlink when he saw it. He immediately got through to Hypnos and found out what was going on.  
  
"Children," Yamaki said, "Hypnos reports that the barrier between the real world and the Digital World is resealing. Unfortunately, it's also pulling in all the data that was expelled from the Digital World."  
  
"You don't mean..." Henry started, almost afraid of what the answer was.  
  
"He means that this is goodbye, Henry." Terriermon, now Gummymon, told his partner.  
  
"No!" Jeri screamed as she held on tightly to Tokomon, previously Elecmon. "I can't lose you again when you just came back to me! You can't leave me again!"  
  
"It's not forever, Jeri." Tokomon told her. "You have a lion's heart, remember? So try to be brave for me, okay?"  
  
"And remember to Momentai, Henry." Gummymon said to his partner seriously. Henry only nodded as the two Digimon pulled away from them and flew into the tear in the sky. Following them was Cocomon, who used to be Lopmon.  
  
"Lopmon!" Susie cried out with tears in her eyes as she gripped Henry's leg tightly. "Lopmon, don't leave me!"  
  
"I'll be back, Susie, I promise..." With that, Cocomon was gone as well.  
  
"You're the only Mega with them now." Kenta said to MarineAngemon. "Try to watch out for everyone else, okay?"  
  
"Don't worry." MarineAngemon chirped. "You can count on me." With that, the little Digimon flew into the tear as well.  
  
"Be careful up there, will ya?" Kazu said to Pugmon, who used to be Guardromon.  
  
"You have my word." The little In-Training Digimon disappeared into the tear along with Impmon, and an unidentified Digimon.  
  
"Hey, Ryo?" Impmon asked as he began to disappear into the tear. "Do me a favor and look in on Ai and Mako, huh?"  
  
"If you take care of Monodramon for me." Ryo said, trying to hide his tears as the two Digimon faded into the tear.  
  
"You take care of yourself up there." Akira said to Demimon, formerly Lizardmon, as he tried to hide his tears.  
  
"Okay..." Demimon said as he flew into the tear.  
  
"I guess playtime's over, huh?" Calumon said as he looked at the sad group.   
  
Alice picked him up gently and looked into the Digimon's eyes. "Don't be sad, Alice." Calumon said happily. "You'll see your friend again, too!" Before she could reply, Calumon jumped out of her arms and flew into the tear.  
  
"This isn't goodbye, Rika." Viximon said calmly as she looked into her friend's tear-filled eyes. "We will meet again, I promise you. I'll always be watching over you until then."  
  
"Thanks, Renamon." Rika said tearfully as her partner flew up into the portal.  
  
"I guess this is goodbye, Guilmon." Takato said as he looked at his partner. "Sorry you didn't get a chance to taste the Guilmon bread. I wish we could've gotten to know each other better. I wish..." Takato couldn't go on because he started crying. "I'm going to miss you, boy."  
  
"I'll miss you too." Gigimon said as he flew up to the rapidly closing tear. "Goodbye, Takatomon. See you next time..."  
  
"Guilmon! GUILMON!" Takato cried as he watched his partner disappear for what he thought was the last time...  
  
-----------------  
  
Several weeks later, life had returned to normal in West Shijuku. For Takato and his friends, it was boring now that the Digimon were gone. They all missed their Digimon terribly and believed that they were gone forever. That is, until today...  
  
Takato and his friends had met in the park that day. It was an almost daily ritual for the group after the Digimon disappeared.  
  
"Man, it's nice to just have a moment of peace with just our friends." Kazu commented. "But it is nice to be in the limelight."  
  
"Please." Kenta retorted. "That's only if you don't mind being hounded by people because you're a celebrity."  
  
"Tell me about it." Henry said. "Still, it's nice to just have a moment with your friends." He then looked over to where Takato was sitting with Rika; his eyes with a faraway look in them. "Poor Takato. He's been like that ever since after the battle with the D-Reaper."  
  
"It's been hard on all of us." Jeri said with a downcast look. Meanwhile, Rika was comforting Takato, in a way.  
  
"Are you going to be okay, Takato?" Rika asked.  
  
"It's been almost a month now." Takato said grimly. "I'm starting to think that I'll never see Guilmon again." Just then, all of the Tamers' digivices went off simultaneously.  
  
"Do you think that it's..." Takato exclaimed as he raced to where Guilmon's old cave was.  
  
"Takato, wait up!" Rika called as she and the others followed. When they got there, to his dismay, the cave was empty.  
  
"It's empty." Takato said as he looked around frantically. "Why is it empty?"  
  
"I'm sorry, Takato." Henry said to his friend. "Maybe it was just a glitch in the digivices."  
  
"Hey, who are you calling a glitch?" a familiar voice said. The group turned around and saw that it was a certain lop-eared rabbit.  
  
"Terriermon!" Henry said happily as he hugged his Digimon. "I thought I'd never see you again!"  
  
"Come on, you know you can't keep me away that long." Terriermon said with a chuckle. "I also brought some friends with me, too."  
  
"Elecmon!" Jeri squealed as she picked up her Digimon.  
  
"It's good to see you again, Jeri." Elecmon said to her. Soon, most of the other Digimon came out and reunited with the other Tamers. As Akira was hugging Lizardmon, he noticed that Alice had a depressed look on her face.  
  
"What's wrong, Alice?" Akira asked his girlfriend.  
  
"I was stupid hoping he'd come back." Alice said solemnly. "I should have known better."  
  
"Should have known what, Alice?" A familiar voice said to her. The young gothic girl turned and saw a small, dog-like Digimon with a familiar look in his powerful and fierce eyes. Akira picked up his digivice and examined the Digimon.  
  
"It says that this is Houndmon." Akira explained. "He's a Rookie Digimon that uses his 'Hound Flame' attack." He smiled when he read what else was on the display. "Alice, it also says that this is the Rookie form of Dobermon."  
  
"Is this true?" Alice said to the small Digimon. Houndmon nodded and nuzzled her cheek. Just then, a small object appeared in her hands. It was a black digivice with a white rim and buttons. Tears came to her azure blue eyes as she examined it.  
  
"Now we are truly partners, Alice." Houndmon told her as the young gothic girl hugged him. Meanwhile, Takato looked among the Digimon and didn't see Guilmon anywhere. Rika saw his concern and went over with Renamon.  
  
"He's not coming." Takato said sadly. "I should have figured that."  
  
"Takato..." Rika started but Takato cut her off.  
  
"Don't say it, Rika. Guilmon's not coming back." Just as he was about to leave, he heard a familiar voice calling him.  
  
"Takatomon, are you going to get some bread?"  
  
"Guilmon!" Takato said as he ran over and embraced his partner happily. "Boy, I thought you weren't going to make it."  
  
"We almost didn't." Calumon said from on top of Guilmon's head. "I told him he was too heavy." As everyone laughed at the little joke, suddenly all of the digivices went off once more. The group went outside and saw a digital field forming.  
  
"All right!" Kazu said. "Looks like we're back in action!"  
  
"What do you say, goggle head?" Rika said to her boyfriend as she took out her old Modify cards. "Ready to mix it up one more time?"  
  
"I wouldn't have it any other way." Takato said to her. With that, the group rushed off to the digital field; ready to face whatever dangers awaited them together...  
  
The End... 


End file.
